Shloka 186
पपात सारथिभश्चास्य मुमोह च गदाहतः । कर्णके बाणोंसे आहत हो वह गदा मन्त्रसे मारी गयी सर्पिणीके समान लौटकर भीमसेनके ही रथपर गिरी। उसके गिरनेसे भीमसेनकी विशाल ध्वजा धराशायी हो गयी और उस गदाकी चोट खाकर उनका सारथि भी मूर्च्छित हो गया
papāta sārathibhaś cāsya mumohā ca gadāhataḥ | karṇake bāṇoṃse āhata ho vah gadā mantrase mārī gayī sarpiṇīke samān lauṭakara bhīmasenake hī rathapara girī | usake giranese bhīmasenakī viśāla dhvajā dharāśāyī ho gayī aura usā gadākī coṭa khākara unakā sārathi bhī mūrcchita ho gayā |
Sanjaya said: Struck by the blow of the mace, Bhima’s charioteer fell and lost consciousness. That mace—having been hit by Karna’s arrows and driven back by mantra-power like a returning serpent—fell upon Bhimasena’s own chariot. With its fall, Bhima’s great banner was brought down to the earth, and the charioteer too, smitten by the impact, fainted.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even the strongest warrior’s visible signs of power—like a towering banner and a steady charioteer—can be overturned in an instant by the compounded forces of skill, weaponry, and mantra. The passage highlights the instability of worldly advantage in war and the accumulating moral burden of violence.
A mace, checked by Karna’s arrows and propelled back through mantra-like force, returns and lands on Bhima’s own chariot. The impact knocks down Bhima’s banner and causes his charioteer to collapse unconscious.